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THE CONTINUING INQUIRY
VOLUME I mmm , October 22. r976
THE PURLOINED LETTER (With apologies to Edgar Allen Poe) by Penn Jones
fT^n?i^ ^S^^?^ purchased a letter written by Jack Ruby which had been smuggled
tn^ i! ^^-Ll^s County Jail. Several such letters were gotten out of the jail
ana so±a at auction by a well known auctioneer in New York City.
Our letter was purchased for $950 over the telephone. We mailed a check that
day, and two weeks later Charles Hamilton called demanding our payment and stat­ing
that the check had not arrived. We wired the money that day and the Ruby
letter duly arrived.
The letter was 32 pages long written on ^ x 6 sheets of paper. The letter
clearly and plainly asserted that Lyndon Johnson was involved in the conspiracy
to kill President Kennedy.
Shortly after the charges were brought against Clay Shaw in New Orleans by
the then District Attorney Jim Garrison, our letter took on new significance. A
hand written letter by a member of a conspiracy is evidence admissible in court.
Our letter took on that new importance.
Soon after the Garrison charges were riled, we startea getting some new
"friends". Black Star, a photography agency suddenly took a great interest in
this editor. Black Star sent a photographer. Matt Herron, to Midlothian from
New Orleans, he took literally hundreds of pictures of this editor. It went on
for days, and we began to feel that we must be a new photographic find. Of course
none of the pictures were ever printed, assuming he had film in the camera.
But it worked, the photographer became a "friend". He in turn recommended a
"friend" who also was "greatly interested" in the assassination. The friend was
from England and said he was in New Orleans studying jazz; nevertheless he was a
great "student" of the assassination of President Kennedy. This friend, Tom
Bethel, came to live with us--for months. We never had a more unpleasant guest.
In addition to other things, he only bathed once a week at two o'clock in the
morning—with loud splashings in the bathroom.
But the letter was in the bank vault. Help arrived. Ramparts Magazine sent
one of its editors who was "deeply interested" in our letter and the assassina­tion.
Ramparts had run a big story on us earlier. It was a fair story, but
although they quoted extensively from our FORGIVE MY GRIEF I, the magazine failed
to mention that they were quoting from a book that was for sale by us.
The Ramparts editor arrived, terribly interested in the Ruby letter. Could we
let him see it? Finally after a few days we took the letter from the bank vault
and the editor agreed to publish the letter, minus the names, paying us $300.00.
NOTE: a printed letter is not admissable as court evidence. Only the hand writ­ten
letter is admissible in court. Then the editor left.
We took the letter to Fort Worth and prevailed upon our friend, John Howard
Griffin to photograph this piece of evidence. We returned with the letter and
negatives in a folder which promptly disappeared from our home.
The New Orleans Jazz, assassination buff, Tom Bethel, left too. Bethel was
later hired by District Attorney Jim Garrison in Garrison's attempt to prove
Clay Shaw had been a CIA agent and had been part of a conspiracy to assassinate

THE CONTINUING INQUIRY
VOLUME I mmm , October 22. r976
THE PURLOINED LETTER (With apologies to Edgar Allen Poe) by Penn Jones
fT^n?i^ ^S^^?^ purchased a letter written by Jack Ruby which had been smuggled
tn^ i! ^^-Ll^s County Jail. Several such letters were gotten out of the jail
ana so±a at auction by a well known auctioneer in New York City.
Our letter was purchased for $950 over the telephone. We mailed a check that
day, and two weeks later Charles Hamilton called demanding our payment and stat­ing
that the check had not arrived. We wired the money that day and the Ruby
letter duly arrived.
The letter was 32 pages long written on ^ x 6 sheets of paper. The letter
clearly and plainly asserted that Lyndon Johnson was involved in the conspiracy
to kill President Kennedy.
Shortly after the charges were brought against Clay Shaw in New Orleans by
the then District Attorney Jim Garrison, our letter took on new significance. A
hand written letter by a member of a conspiracy is evidence admissible in court.
Our letter took on that new importance.
Soon after the Garrison charges were riled, we startea getting some new
"friends". Black Star, a photography agency suddenly took a great interest in
this editor. Black Star sent a photographer. Matt Herron, to Midlothian from
New Orleans, he took literally hundreds of pictures of this editor. It went on
for days, and we began to feel that we must be a new photographic find. Of course
none of the pictures were ever printed, assuming he had film in the camera.
But it worked, the photographer became a "friend". He in turn recommended a
"friend" who also was "greatly interested" in the assassination. The friend was
from England and said he was in New Orleans studying jazz; nevertheless he was a
great "student" of the assassination of President Kennedy. This friend, Tom
Bethel, came to live with us--for months. We never had a more unpleasant guest.
In addition to other things, he only bathed once a week at two o'clock in the
morning—with loud splashings in the bathroom.
But the letter was in the bank vault. Help arrived. Ramparts Magazine sent
one of its editors who was "deeply interested" in our letter and the assassina­tion.
Ramparts had run a big story on us earlier. It was a fair story, but
although they quoted extensively from our FORGIVE MY GRIEF I, the magazine failed
to mention that they were quoting from a book that was for sale by us.
The Ramparts editor arrived, terribly interested in the Ruby letter. Could we
let him see it? Finally after a few days we took the letter from the bank vault
and the editor agreed to publish the letter, minus the names, paying us $300.00.
NOTE: a printed letter is not admissable as court evidence. Only the hand writ­ten
letter is admissible in court. Then the editor left.
We took the letter to Fort Worth and prevailed upon our friend, John Howard
Griffin to photograph this piece of evidence. We returned with the letter and
negatives in a folder which promptly disappeared from our home.
The New Orleans Jazz, assassination buff, Tom Bethel, left too. Bethel was
later hired by District Attorney Jim Garrison in Garrison's attempt to prove
Clay Shaw had been a CIA agent and had been part of a conspiracy to assassinate